Based on the true story of two young people who became heroes, winner of eight awards – Surviving the Fatherland is the triumphant, epic tale of two youths whose courage and resilience stands for the forgotten childhood of an entire generation.
“This book needs to join the ranks of the classic survivor stories of WWII such as ‘Diary of Anne Frank’ and ‘Man’s Search for Meaning’. It is truly that … Meaning’. It is truly that amazing!” InD’tale Magazine
“This type of raw, articulate, history-based storytelling pays homage to the war children who bore witness while struggling to survive.” Publishers Weekly (PW)
Spanning thirteen years from 1940 to 1953 and set against the epic panorama of WWII, author Annette Oppenlander’s SURVIVING THE FATHERLAND is a sweeping saga of family, love, and betrayal that illuminates an intimate part of history seldom seen: the children’s war.
Solingen, Germany, 1940: When her father goes off to war, seven-year-old Lilly is left with an unkind mother who favors her brother and chooses to ignore the lecherous pedophile next door. A few blocks away, twelve-year-old Günter also loses his father to the draft and quickly takes charge of supplementing his family’s ever-dwindling rations by any means necessary.
As the war escalates and bombs begin to rain, Lilly and Günter’s lives spiral out of control. Every day is a fight for survival. On a quest for firewood, Lilly encounters a dying soldier and steals her father’s last suit to help the man escape. Barely sixteen, Günter ignores his draft call and embarks as a fugitive on a harrowing 47-day ordeal–always just one step away from execution.
When at last the war ends, Günter grapples with his brother’s severe PTSD and the fact that none of his classmates survived. Welcoming denazification, Lilly takes a desperate step to rid herself once and for all of her disgusting neighbor’s grip. When Lilly and Günter meet in 1949, their love affair is like any other. Or so it seems. But old wounds and secrets have a way of rising to the surface once more.
Awards
2017 National Indie Excellence Award, 2019 Gold Global eBook Award, 2018 Indie B.R.A.G. Award, 2017 Winner Chill with a Book Readers’ Award, Finalist 2017 Kindle Book Awards, 2018 Readers’ Favorite Book Award, Discovered Diamond Historical Novel, An IWIC Hall of Fame Novel, 2020 Skoutz Award Midlist (German translation)
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Surviving the Fatherland: A True Coming of Age Love Story Set in WWII Germany by Annette Oppenlander is so much more than a love story. This book should become a classic story of the German people during and after World War II because of the knowledge it imparts to each reader. Hitler and his minions tried to destroy the Jews but at the same time Hitler tried to destroy all Germans. Whether Hitler was demon possessed and/or a madman only God can answer but the entire World was affected by his evil. It was a difficult book to read because of the human suffering but very honest with no excuses. I doubt few people today could survive the hardships that these people endured under the Socialist Party of the Nazi Government or the Russian Socialist Government. This is a book of truth, love, courage and endurance during a time of unbelievable oppression by socialistic governments. My thanks to the author, the publisher and netgalley for allowing me to read and review this extraordinary book.
Surviving the Fatherland is about two people growing up during WWII in Germany. About fathers and brothers going off to fight Hitler’s war. About the hardships that the families endured just to survive themselves. How the war affects them which results in the things they do so they can take care of and protect the ones they love.
Surviving the Fatherland is about two boys; Günter and Helmut growing up during the war with one boy, Günter watching as first his father and then his older brother leaves for war and he is left to take care of his mother and younger brother; which of course he does without question or complaining. At first they receive letters from his father and brother but after a while they hear nothing from them and have no way of knowing if they are alive or not.
A seven year old girl Lily watches as her father leaves her and her mother and little brother to go fight in Hitler’s war. Lily has to grow up real fast for a little girl with having to help her mother take care of her little brother and help with all the chores and to help find ways to get food for all of them. Lily has to face this one man who moves into their apartment building who has a very sick mind who preys on little girls. He also goes after her mother as well he is just one sick individual who uses the absence of a man in their life thinking that he can get what he wants. But Lily is a very strong and determined little girl and woman that when the opportunity hits she knows it and take advantage of it and uses what she finds against him to keep him from having any contact with her family ever again.
Surviving the Fatherland is based on the true life events in the author’s family. Surviving the Fatherland will take you down a long hard road filled with love, courage, heartache and hardship but I am glad I was given the opportunity to have read Surviving the Fatherland. I love books where the author can make you feel what the people/characters are feeling and that is just what Annette did in Surviving the Fatherland. She makes you feel as if you are there with Lily when she is caring for her little brother. You feel as if you are right there walking right beside Günter and Helmut when they are on their way to the registration office after they are drafted.
If you have not read Surviving the Fatherland then I would like to suggest that you do. Pick up your copy today!
Surviving the Fatherland is a marvelous book for teaching another side of the story of World War II. The book tells the stories of two children, living in Solingen, Germany, and unknown to each other during the war years. The book is divided into chapters based on the subject, Gunter or Lilly and the year. The first 29 chapters take the reader through the war and are fine for upper middle grade students. However, parents should be aware that explicit sex scenes in the remainder of the book may not be suitable for younger readers.
Overall, I enjoyed reading this book. Having lived in Germany for six years, I saw the remains of the destruction caused by the war, especially the bombings. The book puts people into the ruins and shows the horrors of war on citizens, especially the women and children.
—4.5 Stars—
Wow! This book tells an impressive story of two children who are brave, courageous, and have the strength to fight against all odds to survive.
This book tells the true story of two children, Lilly and Günter in the 1940s in Germany during the Hitler era.
From right off the first page, I was emotionally invested in this book – it’s hard not to be.
This story is based on the author’s family and you feel the authenticity and pain just leap off the page.
My heart just broke reading what these children endured and how they just kept going. I don’t know if I personally would have had the strength to keep going. It was inspiring to see their persistence and determination.
The main characters, Lilly and Günter, are true, pure, and genuine. You will develop an instant bond with these characters and find yourself not only pulling for them, but praying for their safety and wellbeing.
I honestly feel somewhat changed after reading this book. Not in a bad way, perhaps by now having a deeper understanding of empathy, insight, and compassion to children of war. As a millennial, I was lucky to have not grown up during war times. Yes, 9/11 was a sad, and forever changing time, but I lived in the U.S. and at no time did I ever feel unsafe or violated or tortured like others have had to endure during other war eras.
This book was such an interesting and intriguing story and I found myself further invested in the characters and storyline than I expected to be or tend to be with other books. That should the definition of a great book – a book that causes you to feel the emotion of the characters and become fully engaged and invested in the characters and the storyline.
I would recommend this book as this is such an important story to read and understand. Anyone that is put through such obscene and difficult obstacles deserves to have their story told and appreciated. Beware that you may need a box of tissues nearby, as this book is filled with so much emotion that will cause your heart to race, your eyes to water, and your body to cringe. I felt every sentence.
**Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book and have voluntarily provided an honest, and unbiased review in accordance with FTC regulations.**